Friday, August 30, 2013

Hello, hello! As August comes to an end, I figure it's time for a little R and R. And by that, I mean...

That's right! Welcome to the end-of-month, newsletter style post, here at The Mailbox. If you missed the July edition, be sure to check it out here.

This is the time and place where I will share what has caught my eye around the web, things I am loving, what I hope to try soon, and more...

Let's jump right in, shall we?

I am still enjoying Hello Story with Ali Edwards at Big Picture Classes. It really is a wonderful exercise to be given a prompt that requires a bit of mental pondering and digestion. I feel like my layouts have become more intentional and my story telling stronger.

I was delighted to be invited as a mixed media artist over at Paper Bakery Kits. If you missed the projects I have done thus far, you can find them here and here.

Speaking of mixed media, I finished up a project that I am just wild about! It will go live mid-September with the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog. I wish I could say more... but just know that it took a couple of attempts, I learned a ton, and I am jazzed about the outcome!

And, last but certainly not least... a few designers have been recently added to the Simon team that I am on and they are knockin' my socks off! Be sure to check them out. One, in particular is Andrea over at Snapping Monsters. I love when I visit a blog and never know what I am going to see. Her blog is just that! Full of beautiful work and beautiful surprises. She never ceases to amaze me! I mean really - check out this journal:

Ah yes, the brain is always rattling around with things...

Having a wonderful email exchange with a dear friend on the concept of time and priorities. I might put this into a blog series soon...

Thrilled to be starting a circle journal project with the above mentioned friend

Still pondering the idea of personal style and the fine line of everything looking the same. I would actually love to hear your take on this. I find it quite the quandry!

Still staring at and over-thinking a painting I have been working on for a ridiculous amount of time

Slowly pulling supplies and kitting some pages for a crop I get to go to this Saturday.

Thinking and chewing on lots of fall home decor project ideas

Wanting to attempt a rag quilt of sorts

Fall is in the air! My favorite season and I can't wait to get my craft on....

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Well, let's see... lasagna, jambalaya, coconut strawberry smoothies (those were an epic fail, by the way), kale and avocado salad, roasted chicken....Ah - but this is a craft blog, yes?Let's focus!I have been cooking up some more things for the Paper Bakery! I have to tell you, I love what Sarah puts together for the Mixed Media Kit! Not only is the kit packed full of mixed media messy fun as one would expect, but there are also scrap worthy products as well! YAY! I had more fun creating this layered layout:

You can read more about how I created the above page in the original Paper Bakery Post here.And - I was even inspired to make a card! Shocking, I know.

Monday, August 26, 2013

Hi there! It's a new week and a new challenge over at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog. This week, we are gettin' a little dotty! From polka dots to spotted papers, stamps to dots made with a pen, or even embossed dot cardstock, we invite you to get dotty with us this week.

Dots make me think of fun and our most recent adventure full of fun was acquiring our new kitty! He is just the best thing and is certainly scrap worthy.

To get started on the right "dotty" foot, I grabbed this fun paper from Fancy Pants Memories Captured, along with one of my favorite background stamps, my trusty circle punch, and some photos...

Oh yes - let's not forget the flair! I plan on using the exclusive Kelly Purkey flair badge on the left there. I wanted to show you the fabulous size of these badges in comparison with a more standard flair badge... the one on the right (from SNAP). The other great thing about Kelly's flair? While it is larger in diameter, they are also wonderfully flat. There is enough dimension to get the "fair feeling" without added bulk of a bigger piece. LOVE that!

Alright! Let's put that background stamp to use and create a custom background.

It's easy peasy! Just stamp using white acrylic and once that is dry, mist over the area with a neutral grey and then wipe off the excess:

With my background all ready to go, I want to give these Kelly Purkey masks a try. But, instead of misting...

I simply used my pen to outline the fun speech bubble shape:

And with some circles of vellum and white at the ready...

As well as some more circular elements in the form of Basic Grey chipboard...

I layer everything on, including the photos:

Each little photo gets it's own stack of layered fun:

And there we have it! Nice Kitty...

As you can see from the photos - this is THE most laid-back kitty around! He is so tolerant of the kiddos... and really let's them just do anything, which is why we picked him :)

So, how will you get dotty this week? Go get crafty and link-up with us!

Remember... Every week a random winner is chosen to win a $50 spending spree from SimonSaysStamp.com. How awesome is that?

And in case you are wondering...here is a complete supply list of everything I used:)

I am an affiliate at the following stores: (clicking here before you shop will help support my creative endeavors. Thank you!)

Please remember that I have worked hard on the projects posted and all designs and images belong to soapHOUSE (unless otherwise noted). I welcome the opportunity for guest posting and publication. However, please contact me first for publishing rights. Thank you!